UNC Basketball's RJ Davis is making and chasing history

RJ Davis is putting up numbers this season that we don't see very often. Even with the long list of talented players to come through the UNC basketball program, Davis is doing things that have never been done before.

On Monday night versus Miami, Davis set a Dean E. Smith Center record for most points scored in a single game - ever! Davis did that by scoring 42 points on a night that the rest of the Tar Heels struggled offensively.

That wasn't the only feat Davis accomplished... he also became the first UNC Basketball player to ever reach the following milestones in a career: 1,800 points, 200 three-pointers made, 500 rebounds and 300 assists.

And in the college basketball era where there are players receiving extra years of eligibility, this is a good time to remind you that Davis is only in his fourth season and still has that extra year if he chooses to take it.

Also, with his 42 points against Miami, he set the Tar Heel record for most points ever scored against the Hurricanes, with the previous high being held by Tyler Hansbrough in 2008 with 35 points. To go along with that scoring stat, he's just the seventh Tar Heel to score 42 or more points in a single game.

He also outscored the rest of the Tar Heel team 42-33 on Monday night, making it the first time in over 40 years that an individual player has outscored the rest of the team. Michael Jordan achieved that feat in January of 1983 versus Georgia Tech.

That's all history from just Monday night's game versus the Hurricanes in Chapel Hill. Regarding career records for the UNC Basketball program, Davis is 135 points shy of cracking the top five in all-time points scored. He currently sits at 1,912 points. The top five looks like this:

1. Tyler Hansbrough - 2,872
2. Phil Ford - 2,290
3. Armando Bacot - 2,203
4. Sam Perkins - 2,145
5. Lennie Rosenbluth - 2,047

The Tar Heels have a minimum of five games remaining (three regular season games, one ACC Tournament game, and one NCAA Tournament game). With his current average of 21.7 points per game, Davis would end up just short of passing Rosenbluth in scoring (unless, of course, he has another 42-point outing up his sleeve).

The all-time UNC Basketball record for free-throw percentage is also within reach; Davis would hold that mark if his career ended today. The previous record is 84.8%, set by Shammond Williams from 1994 to 1998, making 291 of 343 total attempts. Davis has made 86.3% of his free throw attempts during his time in Chapel Hill and has done so by making 391 of 453 total attempts.

The UNC Basketball single-season record that Davis is currently chasing is three-pointers made. That record currently belongs to Justin Jackson who made 105 during the 2016-2017 National Championship season. Jackson made 105 out of 284 attempts for a 37% shooting percentage from beyond the arc. Davis is currently 90-219 from three-point range, good for 41.1%.

The single-season free throw percentage record is also within reach, which currently stands at 91.1% held by Shammond Williams in 1997-1998 by making 133 out of 146. Davis has made 120 out of 134, good for 89.6%.

For the Tar Heels to accomplish what they hope to over the next month and a half, it isn't unrealistic to say that Davis will be the driving force behind reaching those goals and that several of these career and single-season stats are well within reach.

Does Davis care about the individual accolades? No, probably not. He wants his team to win, which means doing whatever it takes to help the team. The goal at the end of the season is to hang multiple banners in the Smith Center rafters. However, as UNC basketball fans, we are witnessing a historic season right in front of our eyes.

Did I mention that he's also the frontrunner for ACC Player of the Year? His No. 4 jersey will likely be hanging in the rafters of the Dean E. Smith Center in just a few months, hopefully with those banners the Tar Heels are chasing over the next six weeks.

Enjoy these moments, Tar Heel fans. For all the great players that have come through Chapel Hill, RJ Davis is etching his name alongside those in the record books and is still chasing after more.